Are you a learnON customer that’s still relying on the printable (PDF) as your primary teaching resource? If yes then keep reading because this could dramatically change how you teach and how your students learn…for the better. Unlike the previous eBookPLUS, learnON is so much more than simply a digital version of the textbook content. It’s a truly dynamic environment that enables students to immerse themselves in the content and take charge of their learning.

Not fully convinced? Here are five reasons why you should ditch the PDF and use learnON instead.

Reason #1: Questions with feedback test students’ understanding.

Of all the features, this is where teachers and students really win with learnON compared to the textbook or printable (PDF). Unlike with print or eBookPLUS, students are able to complete and submit their exercise questions for every topic (whether for revision, homework or assessment) directly in the learnON platform. Across all subjects, there are now 16 different types of question formats to engage students, including multiple choice, drag and drop, matching, multiple answers, text entry and essay type.

More importantly, students receive feedback for every single question, whether via questions that are automatically marked or worked solutions (for subjects such as Mathematics and Science) or exemplary responses (for subjects such as Humanities and English). Why is feedback so important?

It remedies misconceptions quickly, at the moment students care most—when they get a question wrong and don’t understand why.

For students that do answer correctly, feedback can provide an alternative viewpoint or way of looking at a problem, to extend their thinking.

Feedback reinforces student understanding and is a great source of remediation.

Teachers may not always have time to address individual students’ questions so built-in feedback ensures that students have access to instruction when and where they need it.

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Reason #2: It’s all you need.

learnON combines the textbook, workbook, homework book, assessment and solutions manual all in the one solution. If you’re a Jacaranda Digital Bundle customer, embedded links to complementary digital products (such as the SpyClass and Knowledge Quest games, assessON and interactive myWorld atlases) mean you have easy access to everything Jacaranda.

A printable is only one (small) piece of the puzzle so if you’re looking to simplify your teaching and learning, the choice is clear.

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Reason #3: Media shows up where it counts.

If you’re just using the flat PDF to teach, then you’re missing out on an (easy) opportunity to boost student engagement. Videos and interactivities (many of which are brand new in learnON) are integrated at the point of learning so they appear where they impact students’ learning the most. Compared to eBookPLUS, all media plays in situ so there’s no need to open up a separate browser tab.

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Reason #4: Students can “see” their progress.

The beauty of a digital learning platform such as learnON is its ability to capture digital footprints. Unlike print or eBookPLUS, all students’ activities are tracked and results are clearly visible so students gain immediate insights into their own levels of understanding and work habits. This access to their own data inspires student independence and accountability for their learning.

For learnON premium customers, teachers are connected to their students so they can track progress and performance at a classroom, group or individual student level. This enables the early diagnoses of learning abilities to facilitate intervention and differentiation.

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Reason #5: The printable (PDF) doesn’t match learnON.

From its inception, learnON has been designed and optimised for an online environment. This means that the PDFs were only ever provided for offline backup use only—for example, if the school is experiencing wifi issues or students don’t have internet at home. A side-by-side comparison of the printable and learnON reveals that there are mismatches within the question numbering and question type (a reality given the online environment), and multimedia content may not be referenced in the PDFs. If you’ve made the switch to learnON, save yourself the frustration and make the digital platform your core teaching resource.

Hopefully by now you’re convinced to give learnON a fair go—if you need help along the way, be sure to check out our Quick Start Guide.